Ugandan Rebels Call for Government Representation

Ugandan rebels are demanding that people in the country's north and east get more top government jobs as part of any possible peace settlement.

The rebel Lord's Resistance Army advanced their latest demands Thursday at peace talks with the Ugandan government in southern Sudan.

In a statement, the rebels also accused President Yoweri Museveni's administration of marginalizing the country's north and east during the rebels' 20-year insurgency.

Mr. Museveni has rejected any power-sharing deal with the rebels, instead offering amnesty to top rebel leaders if they lay down their arms.

A government spokesman, Paddy Ankunda, says the rebels risk losing the amnesty offer unless they tone down their rhetoric.

Rebel chief Joseph Kony and his top aides have been hiding at bases in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The rebel leaders face war crimes charges from the International Criminal Court.

The Lord's Resistance Army is accused of killing, kidnapping and mutilating thousands of Ugandan civilians.

Southern Sudan's regional government is attempting to mediate an end to the insurgency, which has spilled over into Sudanese territory. Twenty years of fighting has killed thousands of Ugandan civilians and displaced more than two million people from their homes.